August 2023. Clitheroe.
After the Beer Shack made GBG23 I started saving up a “proper” return to Clitheroe for so long I almost forgot to do it at all. Did you know the next GBG is less than a month away (unless you live in York when normal postal rules don’t apply).
And then when I finally arrange it in Summer it rains all day. Must be Mrs RM’s fault.
But I’m not going to slag off Mrs RM on my blog oh no, not when she (inadvertently) takes photos like the one at the top.
8 minutes on the train from Whalley, £3.10 the two of us (v. £8 on the bumpy bus, boo !), and then a downpour on the two minute dash to the Beer Shack.
And then there’s a queue which stops me short of the bar. A queue !
In fairness, there’s hardly space to spread out at the bar anyway, so I send Mrs RM off to find a table in the dry while I wait for a group of four to decide what they want. They all want Hofmeister.
You’ll have seen a lot of newish GBG bars like this on Simon’s and my blog of late. Appealing to types of pubgoers not just “Untappd Bloke“, posh Scotch eggs, proper seats not high tables,
electronic display board with Nightjar, Cloudwater and a known lager,
and beer served in untraditional drinking vessels.
Don’t knock it (I wasn’t); it works. Mrs RM had searched upstairs and down and given up and sheltered under an umbrella in the rain on a seat that was miraculously dry.
And the Cloudwater was, (?) glass notwithstanding, cool and rich and tasty (3.5).
“Look ! Look at the table !” I urged Mrs RM.
“What ?”
“Look ! Look at the glasses !”
“What ?”
All Hofmeister. It’s the Madri of the modern town craft bar.
Mrs RM was more interested in the Beer Garden Rules.
That was my shot. You can see Mrs RM’s effort at the top, AFTER she’d asked those two ladies permission. BRAPA-esque photography.
Oh, and this was the soundtrack;
I miss Mansun, though discography is a classic example of diminishing returns.
retiredmartin 
“All Hofmeister. It’s the Madri of the modern town craft bar.” – it was amazingly popular in Cobbett’s in Dorking, when I visited in May.
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Cutting edge place, Dorking.
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I’ve yet to see the new Hofmeister. either it hasn’t reached the West Midlands, or I need to visit more pubs.
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Seems particularly big round here and Lancashire, mostly in newer bars. Would expect to see it in the Black Country micros but perhaps Madri offered a better deal.
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One of my first ever gigs was Mansun’s last ever UK one in Liverpool. Great B-sides band. Shame Draper turned out to be such a dickhead.
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I trust you and Mrs RM obeyed the “no heavy petting” rule…
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The only pet we’d have is a fluffy sheep or alpaca, Bill, and they’re not heavy.
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I live surrounded by sheep and have to trudge through their ordure every day. Don’t care if I never see another sheep again. Alpacas on the other hand…
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The Beer Shack wasn’t in the guide when I went there but the day I went coincided with the start of the annual Jazz festival and was rammed. Bot oh boy the beer selection was fantastic. Like you I loved the glasses. The beers in Bowland Beer Hall later were far more predictable and lacked the variety I normally associate with it. Obviously I was spoilt at the Beer Shack.
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The Beer Shack wasn’t in the Guide the last time I was there (was it the Ale House ?). Great to see a place packed and I agree on the beer range and quality, though Cloudwater and Nightjar are almost ubiquitous now !
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Yup went to the Ale House as well….Guess I was lucky as they had plenty of choice too due not doubt the the Jazz festival which was primarily held in various pubs in the town over the weekend. Agree about Cloudwater and Nightjar too.
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